Tuesday, May 18, 2010

In the following video, a teacher named Brad Wray (who's apparently a really cool teacher) sings a song that he wrote on the various types of cognitive bias; he wrote it to help his students study for a Psychology exam.

Which of the following biases do you think are most applicable to common white perceptions of, and interactions with, non-white people? (Maybe . . . all of them?)

Also, why not open this up a bit beyond stuff white people do -- what was the best teacher you ever had like? What did he or she do that really got through to you?

[Lyrics below]

I'm biased because I knew it all along... hindsight bias... I knew it all along.

I'm biased because I put you in a category in which you may or may not belong... representativeness bias... don't stereotype this song

I'm biased because of a small detail that throws off the big picture of the thing anchoring bias...see the forest for the trees

I'm biased toward the first example that comes to mindavailability bias... to the first thing that comes to mind

Oh oh bias don't let bias into your mind

Bias don't try this
it'll influence your thinking and memories, don't mess with these
but you're guilty of distorted thinking

Wow, that song's actually kinda catchy too. I bet his students loved that, and not just because it was cool; i bet it helped them learn, and that they appreciated that too.

Regarding great teachers, I think teachers who really seem to care make a difference. I had one in high school who affected my life greatly, i think, when she saw what was "weird" about me as a good thing. I described things in writing in our English class in very different ways, and she saw them as creative and original ways, and she told the class that about them too. She made me feel special for once, and talented, instead of just "weird." She basically paid closer, and sort of nurturing, attention to INDIVIDUALS than most teachers did.

Like everyone, I have "thought" using my biases in many situations, including my communication with PoC, availability bias in particular; I tend to stick with the example or point of view that comes to mind. I didn't know that they were delineated in this way, and it is helpful to know that, but I have a problem with the song. Brad Wray sings, "Don't let bias into your mind" as if it's possible to just be vigilant and thus bias free (although he does later say, "You're guilty of distorted thinking"). Something closer to "know your biases" would be a more realistic refrain. Thinking one is unbiased might be an aspect of self-serving bias.

@bloglogger:Brad Wray sings, "Don't let bias into your mind" as if it's possible to just be vigilant and thus bias free (although he does later say, "You're guilty of distorted thinking"). Something closer to "know your biases" would be a more realistic refrain.

I agree with this. "Don't let bias take over your mind" or "Don't let bias control your mind" might be a better phrase (but of course screws up the song). People who are truly "unbiased" have learned to control their biases and see them for what they are.

Which of the following biases do you think are most applicable to common white perceptions of, and interactions with, non-white people? (Maybe . . . all of them?)

Most of them do:

anchoring bias: focusing on someone's "strange" accent or clothing rather than their other qualities as a person

availability bias: Mass media can help ensure that positive portrayals of white people are far more prevalent in our mind and popular culture than negative portrayals. (Similarly, more negative portrayals of PoC than positive ones)

confirmation bias: This one, combined with availability bias, really helps stack the deck in favor of white people. White people believe other white people aren't terrorists, therefore Joseph Stack is not a terrorist. Or maybe they want to believe PoC aren't that smart, so they can do this.

self-serving bias: If a white person believes they are responsible for all of their successes, but none of their failures, then surely someone else must be responsible for their failures, right? Thanks to representative bias, that "someone else" can be a whole other group!

Self-consistency bias, in my opinion, doesn't really play a role yet. But it could, and could be far worse than all the other biases put together. If a white person gets pretty far down the road of positive white identity development and anti-racism, they might be a little ashamed of the way they've behaved in the past. But the worst thing they can do is forget those experiences, or the journey that brought them from that point to the present. It's really easy to say "Well, I wasn't really racist that time, I just __________". But it's just plain not true.

I think the biases are applicable to everyone, but the biases I see most in WP as a whole are representativeness bias, anchoring bias and confirmation bias - in that order. I think some of the others require getting to know someone a little more personally.

I also share the same problem bloglogger has with the song. I think on a human level, biases function like a survival technique. You're born to form them for your own safety and also the ease of getting through the day ("x is ok today because it was ok yesterday and the day before, etc. I don't need to think about x being ok tomorrow or the next day"). You determine what works for you based on experiences and/or the information you have about it. Unfortunately, people get their information from some really stupid places much of the time.

Biases need to be reevaluated constantly to make sure they're actually applicable for each situation as it comes. But I really see no way of being UNbiased.

I wish I could figure out a way to keep biases out of my mind entirely, but I do not believe ANYONE is capable of it. So, instead of strive to dispute the biased thoughts I sometimes think with the factual evidence of what I know to be true. In other words, just because a bias pops into my head, does not mean I have to allow it into my heart.

The best teacher I had was Dr. Cera in my two intro psych classes. He scored high enough on the APA exam to teach ANYWHERE (ie: New York/LA), yet taught comfortably at my community college in suburban Vancouver. I learned so much from Dr. Cera, from his entirely appropriate use of 'foul' language in class (seriously) to the fact that he exemplified what it meant for a person to be COMPLETELY real and COMPLETELY genuine. You could never call him on bullshit because it naturally slipped off him. He had an ethos for functionality and cut his hair probably twice a year (only when it grew too long). I used to joke that he was too busy being a genius to cut his white locks and had the semblance of Einstein's hair.

When Dr. Cera conducted our 30-bodied class, he sat down at the tables like we did with his arms neatly together and his glasses half-way down his nose. He made real eye contact with us and often drew examples from his grad school experiences or memorable clients from his private practice. He was totally honest with you and once he even wore an earring! He addressed everybody as "sir" or "miss" and led a classroom conducted with respect, between teacher and student, and student to student. Some teachers in college learned you by name, but Dr. Cera never did. Maybe he was too old. Maybe it was too hard to learn names and faces that change each semester.

I am now majoring in Psychology because of Dr. Cera. His presence gave me real experiences of my own to illustrate the concepts he taught in the classroom, and reflecting on his class gave me the vocabulary and immersion to function in the 'real' world as a person changed for the better. One day, after I wrote a paper on self-actualization (my most personally redeeming), he accidentally called me out by name. That was the best day of my life.

self-serving bias - when white people mess up it was a personal mistake, at worse just a bad apple, or a temporary failure

when black people mess up, it has something to do with being black

I think this every time someone wants to talk about Zimbabwe (because white-run nations are run perfectly?) or welfare (because all those white people on welfare are just having a setback?) or drugs or whatever

Herd instinct: common tendency to adopt the opinions and follow the behaviors of the majority to feel safer and to avoid conflict

Mere exposure effect: the tendency to harbor undue liking for things merely because of familiarity with them

System justification/just-world phenomenon: "the tendency to defend and bolster the status quo. Existing social, economic, and political arrangements tend to be preferred, and alternatives disparaged sometimes even at the expense of individual and collective self-interest."

well, these cognitive biases *are* applicable to "all people," and they can't really be characterized as "[white peoples'] own." actually, studies have demonstrated that some of these are exhibited more by males than females and vice versa, but i'm not aware of any distinctions that have been drawn based on race.

seriously. do you fault wray for not directing his lyrics (which discuss generically applicable cognitive psych phenomena) at white people in particular? how would you propose to distnguish WPs' cognitive biases from universal human cognitive biases? are you suggesting that cognitive biases shouldn't be discussed except within a laser-focused anti-racist framework? obviously the study of cognitive bias has important implications for anti-racist work and those implications cannot responsibly be dismissed via "but look, they apply to EVERYONE"...but i haven't seen anyone in this thread employ that sort of derail. so if your critique isn't directed at anyone here or at wray, what exactly is your point?

Also, isn't it very possible that these studies that you mention are influenced by white researchers own biases?

But what I find most problematic about your comment is its patronizing tone. riche and rvcbard are perfectly capable of understanding that "cognitive biases *are* applicable to "all people." They are making a different point.

Is there a cognitive bias that values statistics over experience, particularly POC experience?

Others can feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe you're not supposed to attack my post for its "tone."

Anyways, I wasn't trying to be patronizing (certainly I wasn't going for anything nearly as patronizing as rvcbard's use of "fail", or, well...your entire post). But when RVCBard posted (& riche co-signed) that

"[White People]...ignore their own problematic cognitive biases,"

it seemed pretty fair to read that as a characterization of various problematic cognitive biases as "[white people's] own." How else would you read it?

While I assume rvcbard and riche are not literally trying to make the point that there exist certain biases exhibited only by WP and not by POC, I'm confused as to what point they're trying to make instead (I expound on this in my post at 12:08).

Also, isn't it very possible that these studies that you mention are influenced by white researchers own biases?

The only studies I mentioned were studies re: gender disparities. But, to clarify: I'm not aware of any studies that have been done, period, to test relative frequency of any of these biases among different racial groups. Is this something you'd advocate?

Finally,

Is there a cognitive bias that values statistics over experiene

That's what all science is supposed to do: value the empirical over the annecdotal. One reason scientists do this is because subjective, anecdotal testimony tends to be more skewed by...wait for it...cognitive bias.

9. Don't bother pointing out that "other people do that too." If you're ever tempted to make a parallel of this sort, please read this post on "The Arab Trader Argument." In a similar vein, avoid discussing sexism, classism, ablism, and so on in ways that overlook or dismiss racism. These factors do of course affect and intersect with racism, but the latter, as in "stuff white people [often] do," is the focus here.

@heuristick:Others can feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe you're not supposed to attack my post for its "tone."

Others can feel free to correct ME if I'm wrong, but my understanding is that the tone argument is when you suggest that a person's tone invalidates or weakens their argument. I did not argue those things. I objected to your tone. And I objected to it particularly because I assume that you are white [please correct me if I'm wrong] and I know that rvcbard is black. imo, this makes the patronizingness more problematic.

I'm not aware of any studies that have been done, period, to test relative frequency of any of these biases among different racial groups.

If these studies have not been done, isn't it possible that some cognitive biases are more frequent among particular groups, like, say whites? So that it may in fact be possible to, for example, "distnguish WPs' cognitive biases from universal human cognitive biases" (granting, of course, that these are tendencies not absolutes)? Doesn't this suggest your original argument is flawed?

That's what all science is supposed to do: value the empirical over the annecdotal.

Maybe that's what science is supposed to do, but it's not what we do here because lack of empirical "proof" is often used to invalidate what POCs have to say. It felt to me that you were doing this to rvcbard--i.e., how can you say that if you have no empirical proof?

I'm confused as to what point they're trying to make instead

I don't want to speak for them, but this is what I hear in rvcbard's words:

-White privilege makes white people more prone to particular cognitive biases [in some ways, whiteness/white privilege is an amalgam of cognitive biases]

[redacted -- when other commenters here tell you to leave them alone, then do, please, leave them alone. ~macon]

@ Julia,

[T]he tone argument is when you suggest that a person's tone invalidates or weakens their argument. I did not argue those things. I objected to your tone.

If that's the rule here, that's good to know. I'll update my understanding: it's ok to chastise for tone, as long as you don't suggest the flawed tone bore on the validity of the argument overall. Got it.

If these studies have not been done...[d]oesn't this suggest your original argument is flawed?

If you care to elaborate on this logic, I'd be curious to read what you have to say. Because to me the answer is obviously no.

It felt to me that you were doing this to rvcbard--i.e., how can you say that if you have no empirical proof?

Well, it was more like, I'm confused about what it is you're saying since I'm not aware of any empirical evidence for the point you SEEM to be making, nor is there any other evidence or explanation offered instead.

So what you think rvc and riche are saying (and what you're likewise saying) is that white people erroneously believe their cognitive biases (which you admit are "not unique to white people") are shared by all people?

You're right. If that's the point, I'm totally missing it.

Here, however, is a point I'll grant instead: some white people probably do point to the universal nature of cognitive bias in order to trivialize/excuse racism. This is basically the same as pointing out, per this tired "Arab Trader" meme, that "all people have prejudice," ignoring the "power" portion of the racism equation. White people aren't ignoring their own problematic cognitive biases; rather, they're discounting the fact that universally-prevalent cognitive biases, when wielded they happen to be wielded by white people, have disproportionately problematic consequences for POC and for society at large. I haven't personally observed WP doing this, but it's easy to imagine.

@heuristick: "Here, however, is a point I'll grant instead: some white people probably do point to the universal nature of cognitive bias in order to trivialize/excuse racism. This is basically the same as pointing out, per this tired "Arab Trader" meme, that "all people have prejudice," ignoring the "power" portion of the racism equation. White people aren't ignoring their own problematic cognitive biases; rather, they're discounting the fact that universally-prevalent cognitive biases, when wielded they happen to be wielded by white people, have disproportionately problematic consequences for POC and for society at large. I haven't personally observed WP doing this, but it's easy to imagine."

yes. this. or, close enough, anyhow.

thanks for "granting" that. very generous of you, I'm sure. It's good to know who the authority on truth is around here.